Dining with dogs: Davidson Brothers in Glens Falls

It’s hard to imagine dining outdoors right now, given the spell of cold and wet weather we’ve been having, but we’ve had plenty of days this year perfect for eating outside with your dog and, I expect, more of them ahead. Here’s a look at one place to do it:

I prefer my burgers rare.

Back in April, after taking pictures at the Canine Angels Walk to Fight Cancer in Glens Falls, we stopped at Davidson Brothers downtown. We were a little early for lunch and they were still in the process of opening for the day, but that didn’t stop owner Rick Davidson and the rest of his staff from giving us a great welcome.

After we were seated, Bandit quickly got a big, full water bowl from our server, which he eagerly lapped up. He also got a handful of dog biscuits — but he’s surprisingly picky about treats, and left them alone. It’s also possible he had his eyes on a bigger prize at the time. (See right.)

I won’t get too much into the food, as I’m not really a restaurant critic, except to say that the service was great, we enjoyed our burgers and the beer was excellent. (For staff and reader reviews for restaurants throughout the Capital Region, click here.)

It was our first time eating at a restaurant with the boy, and Davidsons made it a pretty worry-free experience. There was enough space between tables that we didn’t have to be too concerned about Bandit bothering our fellow diners.

Also, the size of the outdoor dining area meant that we didn’t have to be in close quarters with any other canines there — a family with a dog came in while we were eating and were seated far enough away that I don’t think they even realized the other was there.

6 Responses

We’re big fans of the Lark Tavern for dining ala dog. Junot’s pretty much a regular at the Lionheart in Albany, although they don’t serve food there. Everyone knows his name there, but he sticks mainly to water these days.

I think it’s still kosher at Cafe Madison too, which is nice for brunch. Junot’s also gone to Wolff’s Biergaarten before.

I have to chime in. I visited The Davidson Brothers for the first time back in January. A large group of us, including two small children, had spent the day tubing at West Mountain. We were cold, hungry and tired, and one of our group made the executive decision to go to DB’s for a bite to eat before heading home.

The food; fast, hot,tasty,well-executed and reasonably priced, the restaurant and facilities were spotless, and the entire staff couldn’t have been more patient or more pleasant.
What more could you want or need from a dining establishment?

When my husband and I visited London and stopped in at some of the local pubs we were very happy to see the occasional dog at his master’s feet. Frequently there was a fire burning in the fire place and the atmosphere was pleasant. I thought it was sad that this tableau was not possible here in our area. I understand the possible risk and can see the objection to unruly or annoying behavior of the dogs. Proprietors should be able to evict an unruly dog as well as an unruly person. I guess the law saves the public from being annoyed and saves the proprietors from having to make arbitrary decisions. Alas, I can only recall the memory of the beautiful eyes of the dog resting his head on his master’s shoe while waiting for the walk back home.